On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft

King describes the June 1991 accident he was involved in. The family is staying at their house in Maine, and King takes one of his usual walks one afternoon. He walks along the shoulder of Route 5 and, as he is walking up the crest of a hill, a Dodge van hits him. The driver is Bryan Smith, who is trying to push his Rottweiler away from a cooler of meat when he hits King. King does not remember being hit, but later recalls “snapshots” of the aftermath (255).

King is, “lying in the ditch and there’s blood all over my face and my right leg hurts […] my lap now appears to be on sideways” (256). Smith assures King that help is on the way, and King passes out again. A medic attends to him and brings him to Northern Cumberland Hospital. His injuries are so extensive that King is helicoptered to Central Maine Medical Center. On the flight, his lung collapses. After he is transferred to the Medical Center, there is “a great big whack taken out of the memory-film” (261).